Manhattan Theatre Club Announces Programming for MTC VIRTUAL THEATRE

Manhattan Theatre Club has announced programming for MTC Virtual Theatre, set to continue online through the end of 2020 and beyond.

While physical stages remain dark across America, Manhattan Theatre Club invites audiences to gather virtually as a community and find connection, inspiration, and entertainment through a series of virtual theatrical experiences from the comfort of their homes.

Up-to-date information about all MTC Virtual Theatre initiatives can always be found at www.manhattantheatreclub.com/virtual.

Ted Snowdon Reading Series - November 10-December 15

MTC's Ted Snowdon Reading Series, dedicated to the support and development of innovative new work, offers audiences the opportunity to hear rehearsed readings of new plays. This year, the series goes virtual and the line-up includes five new works, including two MTC commissions, from an exceptional group of writers. Running November 10-December 15, all performances will premiere at 2:00pm ET on Tuesdays on MTC's YouTube channel and Broadway On Demand. Readings will remain online for four days, through 2:00pm Saturday. MTC is grateful to Ted Snowdon for his generous support of this series.

Read more about this season's Reading Series playwrights HERE.

Premiering November 10:

Long

By Charlie Oh

Directed By Dustin Wills

Thomas "Tommy Long" survives in the gay porn industry with one simple rule: know your role. For him, that is the submissive Asian geisha. When James, a new ripped Asian actor, joins the company, Thomas begins to question if he can be something more. Can he upend the prejudices of the porn industry? And at what cost? Blending comedy and Kabuki, pornography and Peking Opera, Long explores the legacies of colonialism, racism, misogyny, and homophobia within Asian American communities.

Premiering November 17:

(An Audio Guide For) Unsung Snails and Heroes

By Julia Izumi

Directed by Natsu Onoda Power

In 1945, a young girl journeys from Japan to Manchuria to retrieve her deceased father's bones, just before the end of World War II. Inspired by a true story from the playwright's family history, this beguiling, epic yet personal play follows an ancestor snail and a self-guided audio tour to excavate the definition of heroism across generations and cultures.

Premiering December 1:

Ball Change

By Brittany K. Allen

Set at the switchboards of an elite celebrity answering service, Ball Change examines how our communication technologies (and metropolitan mythologies) become obsolete. When we first meet the "Chimes" in the swinging 60s, all is glam and good fun, but fifty years of economic, social, and technological upheaval sure leave their mark on a girl. This is a time-traveling tale about how objects and ideas go out of style, commissioned by MTC through the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

Premiering December 8:

As Is: Conversations with Big Black Women in Confined Spaces

By Stacey Rose

Directed by Tiffany Nichole Greene

As Is is the story of four Big Beautiful Black Women living the everyday struggle of trying to lose a few pounds and navigating their Big Black Womeness in the confined spaces of their lives. D. Everette has found her stride as a college professor. Antonia seems to have stumbled upon the perfect manifestation of Black love. Beverly has her children and her grief. It is young Camille who threatens to unravel the four-way friendship with her inability to find, and relegate herself to, a confined space of her own.

Premiering December 15:

Friendly Monsters

By Penelope Skinner

Directed by Nicole Charles

Zoe has just moved in with her older boyfriend, Simon, who is everything she could dream: charismatic and successful, a supportive partner, a doting father to his young daughter. But when Zoe becomes curious about Simon's history with his next-door neighbor, the solid ground beneath her begins to shift. Set against the backdrop of current events, a gripping and affecting play about what - and whom - we believe. Friendly Monsters is an MTC/Bobbie Olsen Play Commission.

The Show Goes On - Monthly Beginning November

Once a month, revisit some of MTC's greatest hits and rare gems, with production footage alongside new stories and commentary from original members of the cast and creative team. The series will kick off in November with MTC's 2012 production of Murder Ballad, with a new show to follow each month thereafter.

Artists in Conversation - Continuing Monthly

Take a front row seat and hear from some of today's most in-demand theatrical talents. MTC brings two artists together for a discussion about their artistic perspectives. The series, which recently kicked off with Eboni Booth and Jocelyn Bioh, continues. Sign up for MTC's email list or keep an eye on MTC's Facebook page for announcements.

Past conversations can be located at www.manhattantheatreclub.com/virtual.

Student Monologue Challenge: Wave 2 - Ongoing

Within two weeks of the closure of our theatres and schools' transition to remote learning, MTC Education launched the Student Monologue Challenge as a way to offer high school students a platform to express what was on their minds and in their hearts. The most exceptional written entries were brought to life by some of today's most exciting acting talents, including Tyler Alvarez, Tala Ashe, Jordan Boatman, Gaten Matarazzo, J. Alphonse Nicholson, Marquis Rodriguez, Babak Tafti, Taylor Trensch, Ana Villafañe, and Kara Young.

MTC received more than 350 entries in response to the first writing prompt - "There's something I need to say to you" - and is delighted to now begin accepting a second round of submissions for a new prompt - "You have no idea..."

Visit www.manhattantheatreclub.com/education/studentmonologuechallenge for more information and details on how to enter.

Coming Soon: Virtual Benefit

In early December 2020, MTC will present its first-ever virtual benefit featuring all-new material written especially for this event.

More information about the fundraiser, and the continuing 2021 season of MTC Virtual Theatre, will be announced soon.